germain

Good to know… thanks for sharing. Where does one get a pure silk violin cover?

Good point except airtight case ensures stable humidity when I drop the Boveda in it. Temperature is not a concern for me as I never leave instrument in a hot car, sunlight exposure etc.,

I use “Cushy” cover for now. I don’t want scratches on that gorgeous carbon fiber finish.

I have two Accord cases (Great for the money and much better than GEWA) I also own three Musafia cases one of them Enigma model. I have to say from the traditional point of view Musafia is unsurpassed. For many years I only used Musafia. Unparalleled attention to detail and workmanship. For the first time I found the same quality and attention to detail in a new age carbon fiber case. Just like Musafia completely hand made. It’s another amazing option- Wiseman case.

Yes very innovative design- from the way the bows are suspended to the way the instrument is secured in place by being held in the middle of the case by its building blocks rather than applying pressure against the chin-rest and tied neck etc., also the shell is reinforced by metal. Amazing latches that create air tight case. I had a GEWA air 1.8. It had such a flimsy shell. A few years ago I slipped on ice the top of the case gave way in and destroyed the top of one of my teaching instruments.

So far I am beyond impressed with the built quality and the amount of thought and innovation that has gone into designing this case…

oh it doesn't take much to make a viola player happy...

When it comest to classic French bows you had the regular nickel mounted bows (although in some cases when nickel was first introduced there were some very fine nickel mounted bows as nickel was seen as the new "cool" material to use), Silver mounted was the next level, and Gold were the best bows.

To be forgotten...

Ouch...

Excellent points. Thanks for sharing!

Other than Ventapane what other Neapolitan maker made violins in the 19th century? All of the great ones such as Pistucci, Sannino, Bellarosa, Bellafontana are all early 20th c. My point was that with the exception of Rocca and Pressenda not much was happening in Italy during the 19th century.

Yes definitely a more accurate title...

... do I have it right? Classic Italian violin making dies at the end of 18th century with the Milanese "cheapjacks" such as Landolphi/ Testore in Milan and Ceruti in Cremona. Violin making more or less moves to Paris in the workshops of Lupot, Pique, Vuillaume and Thibout. In Italy the only makers that continue the tradition of great instrument making throughout the 19th century are Pressenda and Rocca. As French violin making at the end of the 19th century shifts towards trade quality mass produced industrialized violins Leandro Bisiach revives the glory of the Italian violin making in Milan in the early 20th century thus begins the renaissance of modern Italian violin making.

Yamaha violins are amazingly solid instruments. From their student V7/10 all the way to their pro quality YVN 500S model which I also own. They don't cut corners it is that simple.

Alright lets not get carried away here... Poggi made great violins. Perfect yet not too exciting looking. Paying $240k for one is BS. One can get a similar sounding Carl Becker at $35-45K.

Same here. I watch their videos occasionally. They are trained violinists and taking strings/classical music issues and taboos mainstream... nothing wrong with that. It is becoming harder and harder to keep classical music relevant with the young "Instagram" generation when the attention span is 3 seconds...

PR for the modern day social media generation...

Yes Poggi is the A-list player spare violin... Aaron Rosand played on a Del Gesu which I believe is in the Curtis Institute of Music now. Same for Oistrach/ Stern. Stern's favorite violin was his Del Gesu while Oistrach played on a golden period Strad

@twcellistdon't sweat it too much. Looks like a nice instrument and I am sure you liked the sound. If you get it at the low end of the estimate you've done well and will have a great instrument to play on. If you get an attribution on it down line its like hitting the lottery... not to mention Tarisio often doesn't do their homework lately

Poggi is still an instrument that could be purchased by a member of a major philharmonic or a wealthy collector. Popular in the Asian market as well hence the high prices. The A list performers look in the instrument realm above... Vuillaume, Guad and beyond

From what I've been told by my violin restorer Poggi was independently wealthy. Rich boy working in a castle somewhere near Bologna not very much liked by the rest of the makers in the trade trying to make ends meet by faking old classic instruments...

Poggi is super "hot" right now. Bringing north of $200K at auction. I always found his violins to appear somewhat cold. I guess they are so perfect that like some French instruments tend to become boring looking. Perhaps not so much the case with the OP violin pictured. They also seem to be consistently very nice sounding instruments. I don't think I have played a bad sounding one at Tarisio in NY. Does that justify the price tag?

I had a very similar high arched instrument made by an obscure maker named Johann Blasius Weigert in Linz (18th century). This viola totally reminded me of that. So I totally agree with @jacobsaunders Southern Germany/ Austria.

Why don't you bring it to one of the French specialists. Depending on your location perhaps consult with Rampal if you are in the EU who will be your best bet if this instrument is French or someone like Landon in NY. I am sure there are many other options for examining the instrument in person if you are seeking proper attribution.